


Paint Her a Picture

by Okami01



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Love Confessions, Painting, The Great Fódlan Bakeoff (Fire Emblem)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:53:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26445901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Okami01/pseuds/Okami01
Summary: Ignatz struggles on how, when and even if he should tell Marianne that he likes her or not.For the 2020 Great Fodlan Bakeoff!
Relationships: Marianne von Edmund/Ignatz Victor
Comments: 4
Kudos: 9





	Paint Her a Picture

Ignatz stared out of his window into the sunrise. The.sky was grey. Light blues, pink mixed together to create a beautiful scene. Beautiful. Ignatz would have painted it if he had the time. 

He shook his head. Panting could wait. Though his brushes looked calming. And it wouldn't hurt to pick one up and start something.   
Ignatz sighed. He smoothed his hand over the brush.   
The thought of getting lost in art for a little while was tempting. But it wasn't what he needed to do now. What he wanted.   
If he stayed here and panted forever, he'd never be able to talk to Marianne again. He had to talk to her. 

Of course, there was a war going on. He had to train, eat, see his parents. Live his life hopefully. Who knew how long the war would drag on for. If Ignatz would be able to survive. He didn't want to die. 

Before, Garreg Mach had been a beautiful sprawling monastery. Stained glass windows and intricate masonry. Sacred hallowed hallways, kept clean and spotless. Lush greenery and flowers grew and were kept immaculate. Every part of the building was used and kept busy in some way. Priests and priestesses walked around with purpose and pose. Not mentioning the religious symbols that were spread around everywhere. 

To think that the monastery was a place built to worship the goddess that had been around for centuries upon centuries. It was a beautiful ancient building.

That building and the people within it had got caught up in war. War was horrific, terrifying even.   
The monastery was still standing. Changed and crumbling. Showing wear and cracks from the furious battle before. Ceilings caved in. Dust and rubble from a lack of cleaning and care. Weeds and wildlife running rampant through the place. Even cracked and distorted, it's still beautiful in a way. Because it's survived. 

Because they survived. 

Ignatz and the rest of the Golden Deer were still alive. For better or for worse. And even though his whole life had been turned upside down, things went on.   
.   
There was something bitter and violent about battle. Ignatz painted it sometimes. The images that he saw on the battlefield burned horribly in his mind. Scorched there even after he got his thoughts and emotions on canvas. Sometimes, that was cathartic. At the very least, he was never out of ideas.

There were times when war was overwhelming. When it consumed all. Just as there were moments where things were ok. Bright times when Ignatz could relax. Pant, eat his favorite meals, garden, listen to choir performances. 

The sun still set and rose. As it always did. and that thought was sort of comforting. Even more so, that whether Ignatz cleaned his paintbrushes or his bow and arrow. Life would find a way to survive. 

Some of the weeds that sprouted up in the garden were beautiful. 

Time seemed to speed up and slow down at random. Peace or bloodshed at a moment's notice. 

But that wasn't what Ignatz was supposed to be thinking about. He sighed yet again. Twirled one of his paintbrushes in his hands and grasped it firmly. 

He had no idea what life would bring. And that's why he had to do what he had to do now.

____

Not that asking to court Marianne was a bother by any means. What was an issue, is that anything Ignatz thought about talking about it, he froze. Rejection, depression, the ruination of any friendship that they have. 

He thought that she liked him. Spending time with each other after long days. Looking at scenery or whatever paintings he panted. Ignatz enjoyed being with her. 

And caught up in the moment, surrounded by a peaceful atmosphere, he'd almost said it. 

Because with any hope, the war would end. And they'd have to part ways. 

Words rattled around in his brain. Poetic platitudes that he couldn't quite get out of his mouth without becoming tongue-tied and blushing.   
He'd never been particularly good at poetry. Still, he could understand how poets compared people to nature or animals. Marianne was like a gentle rainstorm. A flower covered in dew. With kind eyes like a fawns and a laugh like a pretty bird that he didn't know the name of. 

Eventually, Ignatz did start to paint. But it was then that he found his answer. 

____

He and Marianne decided to meet on the hilltop that they sometimes came to. The view was beautiful there and sometimes they liked to see it together. 

Ignatz carefully took the canvas out of his bag and handed it to her. 

" Um… I hope that you don't find it creepy. I can always burn it."

Marianne looks down at the painting. Smiling down slightly as she was in the picture. In the picture, she was surrounded by deer, flowers, and little birds. The sunset at her back made her look aglow. Like some beautiful loving spirit in the fields.

" You painted me," she says, still smiling thankfully. " Oh no- Ignatz why would you burn it. I love it. Thank you."

" I just well… I couldn't get your hair color the way I wanted it too. Usually when I paint beautiful things I don't mind if it's not exactly the way it is in my head. I don't usually paint real people either. But it's frustrating because it would be better if I could have found some shinner brown or for your eyes. Or something more sparkly for your smile. You know?"

There weren't words to describe how beautiful Marianne was. Not a color that matched her hair or eyes so perfectly. But maybe that was because there wasn't anything in this world that would do her justice. 

Marianne sort of giggled. " Ignatz," she said softly. " I really like this picture. And… I like it when we spend together."

Ignatz tensed, his heart raced. Waiting for a 'but,' or an, ' unfortunately.'

" If you ever paint me again… next time you should paint yourself next to me. If you want too." She was blushing.

" Marianne, do you mean… that you want us to enter a courtship together?"

She nodded, still blushing. " Y-yes. I'm so glad you asked."

Ignatz reaches out and holds her hands in his. Their fingers intertwine. " I'm glad too."

**Author's Note:**

> Well I managed to write something! Happy Fodlan Bakeoff . This was fun
> 
> @Tavitay on Twiiter


End file.
